Apparatus for bonding rails and the like



W. E. HUBER.

APPARATUS FOR BONDING RAILS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-7.1916.

1 ,3 1 2,401 Patented Au 1919.

2 SHEETS- I.

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W. E. HUBER. 'APPARATUS FOR BONDING RAILS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 7. 1916. 1,312,401. Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET O ITOI NEW i w w m f an electric rail splice.

the following is UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM E. HUBER, OF EAST CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE ELECTRICRAILWAY IMPROVEMENT G OF OHIO.

' Specification of Letters Patent.

MPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION APPARATUS FOR BONDING RAILS ANDTHE LIKE.

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

Application filed December 7, 1916. Serial No. 135,632.

To all whom it may concern:

, Be it known that I, WILLIAM E. HUBER, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of East Cleveland, county of Guyahoga, and State of Ohio,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Apparatus for BondingRails and the like, of which a specification, the principle of theinvention being herein explained and the best mode in which. I havecontemplated applying that principle, so as to distinguish it from otherinventions.

The subject of the present invention is In bonding the returncircuit andpositive feeders consisting of the rails on electric roads, it is, inmost cases, impossible to use a rigid connection between the rail endsand therefore flexible connectors in the form of the so-called bonds,consisting of cables of flexible wires, have been used for this purpose.Flexibility is an essential of such a connection under the ordinarycircumstances in order to allow mold used in carrying out my improvedfor :the expansion and. contraction of the rails under temperaturechanges. In subwayconstruction, however, where tempera ture changes arerelatively small, and on third rail feeders which aremounted oninsulators and are usually free to slide in said insulators, I haveconceived the idea of forming a solid connection between the abuttingrail ends. The present invention is intended for this purpose and hasbeen designed to provide ahomogeneous juncture between the railends,which may be accomplished as above stated or by homogeneously joining aconductor at each end to the contiguous ends ofthe rail. To theaccomplishment of the foregoing and related ends,

said invention, 'thenyconsists of the means hereinafter fully describedand particularly pointed out in the claims.-

The annexed drawings and the following description set forth in detailcertain means and; one mode of carrying out the invention, Suchdisclosed means and mode'illustrating, however, but one of various waysin which the principle of, the invention may be used. In said annexeddrawings Figure 1- is a view in perspective of a process; Fig. 2 is aplan view, partially in fsection showing two abutting rail ends, Eon

either side of which are placed in'ol'ds of the -may be poured intothemain recess character shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a transverse sectionon the line 3-3 in Fig. 2; F ig. 4. is a view similar to Fig. 1 butshowing a modified form of the mold for use in joining a previouslyformed conductor to a rail; Fig. 5 is a plan view, partially in sectionshowing two abutting rail ends against which are placed two of the moldsof the character shown in Fig. 4:; Fig. 6 is a section on the line 66 inFig. 5; and Fig. 7 is a similar section on the line 77 in Fig. 5.

In Fig. 2 there are shown two adjacent rails 1 having their ends inabutment, and it will be understood that in case the ends of the railsare not in contact when it is desired to apply the connection, then athin sheet 2 of asbestos or similar material softer than the adjacentrails may be slipped between the same to form a continuous surfaceagainst which a mold may be placed. In order to form the connectionbetween the rail ends I place a mold 10 against the two abutting railends, such mold being provided with a main body portion having a recess3 open at its top and connecting with a pouring sprue 4 at its top. Theform of the chamber or recess 3 can best be seen from Fig. 1, and itwill be noticed that the pouring sprue is of substantially the samewidth as the recess, the recess being of course of the desired shape ofthe completed connection between the rail ends. At either end thisrecess opens into an adjacent chamber or recess 5 constituting anoverflow reservoir for any excess of moltenmetal which ly between thesetwo spaced overflow chambers. Each of the latter is provided with ventsor air openings 6 at its top as indicated;

- The molten metal is poured into the recess3, and at first runs out ofthis recess into the overflow chambers at either side. thus contactingand heating-the surfaces of the rail ends and bringing the same to hightemperature so that as the metal accumulates inthe chamber 3 the. railends are at a temperature adapting them. to be fused with themolten-metal and to be homogeneously joined thereto. In this method, ofjoining the adjacent rail ends the molten metal is, usedc topreliminarily heat the rails to the desired temperature", the last stepbe ing the retaining of a desired body of the molten metal against suchpreliminarily heated portions of the rails, thus effecting a homogeneousunion between the two. When the mold is removed the excess metal in theoverflow chambers may be cut through at the point of connection to themetal in the main chamber, and can removed the homogeneity of the unionof the metal closely adjacent to the main body can be seen, thusfurnishing an indication of the thoroughness of the union between themain body of the metal and the rail ends. .The metal may be melted inany desired manner and in any suitable kind of apparatus, such forexample as a coke, kerosene or electrical furnace, and it has been foundthat a joint formed in this mannor is stronger at the point of unionbetween the copper and the iron of the rail than is thecopper itself,copper being of course the usual metal employed for this purpose.

The main or central chamber or recess in the mold is preferably formedin the side of a removable member 7 which is preferably slidablyinserted in a suitable recess in the side of the main body of the mold,which is preferably iron or some similar heat-conducting material. Thisremovable member is preferably formed of a heat-insulating material,such for example as carbon, graphite or the like, and in this way thebody of metal in the main chamber is mamtained at a relatively hightemperature, while the metal in the overflow recesses is cooled, byreason of the radiation of the heat therefrom, and thus does nothomogeneously join the metal of the rail, and can be more readilyremoved. Furthermore, in this manner the cost of the mold can be reducedand its life increased, as should the main chamber become worn it can bereadily removed and a new member inserted, thus providing a clearly cutchamber or mold proper at all times.

In some cases it is desirable to attach a previously formed conductor atthe ends to abutting rail ends, and a mold for carrying out the presentprocess inthis connectionis shown in Figs. t to 7. Such a mold 2O isprovided with a lateral recess or slot 11' in which the end of the bondterminal or conductor may be inserted, the terminal portion of suchconductor being received in the recess 12 about which there is a certainamount of space for the pouring of the molten metal. This molten metalmay be poured onto the terminal through a pouring sprue 13 in whichisprovided a removable member 14 closing off 'the greater p art of thepouring sprue and formmg a practically closed chamber about the terminalof the conductor. Located adjacent to the conductor receiving chamberin. the mold is an overthen be removed a from the rail, and when thismetal 15 so,

flow chamber or'recess 15 into which the excess metal flows beneath themember 14: and the central part of the mold, and which is connected withthe atmosphere by means of a vent 16. r r

In use two molds of this type will be used, one for either end of theconductor, and these molds will be placed as shown in Fig. 5. Thelateral slots will be formed to receive snugly the conductors and thusprevent the escape of'metal through this slot, and the action will beseen to be substantially as in the process in which the molds alreadydescribed are used, namely, molten metal is poured into the main moldingchamber over the surface of the rail which is to be connected, and inthis case-also over the terminal which is to be attached to the rail,thus heatingthese metals to a high temperature when a certain amount ofmolten metal is retained in such chamber for the purpose of constitutingthe connection between the bond terminal and the rail.

My improved method of forming an electric rail splice, together with theapparatus for arrying out the same, are a'considerable improvement byreason of their convenience, and operate to afford an extremely closeand intimate juncture between the connecting metal and the rail ends,although if necessary the bond or connection can be removed by cuttingthe same from the rail, whereas were the rail ends welded together therewould be considerable difliculty met with in severing the ends oftheadjacent rails in case of a wreck, when it might be necessary toremoveone or more lengths of rail. The preferred metal for forming the unionis, of course, copper, as to use iron would be to make a very bulkyjoint whereas copper stripsof the cross sectional area indicated,approximate a conductivity equal to that of the rail.

Other forms may be employed embodying the features of my inventioninstead of the one here explained, change being made in the form orconstruction, provided theelements'stated by any of the following claimsor the equivalent of such-stated elements be employed, whether producedby my preferred method or by others embodying steps equivalent to thosestated in the following claims.

I therefore particularly point out and distinctly claim as myinvention 1. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous facesof two abutting rail ends comprising a'mold having a lateral" recesstherein, an entrance 'sprue in thetop of said mold leading to suchrecess, said mold having other lateral recesses disposed at either sideof such first-named recess,

egress spru'es connecting such first-named recess with such otherrecesses thereby constituting the latter overflow reservoirs, said moldhaving air vents leading from such other recesses.

2. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous faces of twoabutting rail ends comprising a mold having spaced lateral recessestherein, and a member remov ably mounted in said mold intermediate suchrecesses, said member having a recess therein and egress spruesconnecting the same with such spaced recesses, thereby constituting thelatteroverfiow reservoirs.

3. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous faces of twoabutting rail ends comprising a mold having spaced latcral'recessestherein, and a member removably mounted in said mold intermediate suchrecesses, said member having a recess therein and egress spruesconnecting the same with such spaced recesses, thereby constituting thelatter overflow reservoirs, said mold having air vents leading from suchspaced recesses.

4. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous faces of twoabutting rail ends comprising a mold having spaced lateral recessestherein, and an infusible member removably mounted in said moldintermediate such recesses, said member having a recess therein andegress sprues connect- Oopies of this patent may be obtained for fivecents each, by addressing the ing the same with such spaced recesses,thereby constituting the latter overflow reservoirs.

5. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous faces of twoabutting rail ends comprising a mold of heat conducting material havingspaced lateral recesses therein; and a member of relatively poor heatconducting material mounted in said mold intermediate such recesses,said member having a recess therein and egress sprues connecting thesame with such spaced recesses, thereby constituting the latter overflowreservoirs.

6. Means for forming a rigid conductor across contiguous faces of twoabutting rail ends comprising an iron mold having spaced lateralrecesses therein, and a carbon member mounted in said mold intermediatesuch recesses, said member having a recess there in and egress spruesconnecting the same with such spaced recesses, thereby constitut ingoverflow reservoirs.

Signed by me, this 6th day of December,

WILLIAM E. HUBER. Attested by GERALD HOWATT, JOHN G. KJ'ELLGREN.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

